Paulo Bento: 'Cristiano Ronaldo deserves Ballon d'Or'

Portugal boss Paulo Bento believes that it would be "unfair" if Cristiano Ronaldo did not win the upcoming FIFA Ballon d'Or.

The Real Madrid forward, who is the favourite for the award ahead of Barcelona's Lionel Messi and Bayern Munich's Franck Ribery, has scored 26 goals in 20 games for Los Blancos this season.

"For me, he's the best player in the world. It would be unfair if he didn't win the Ballon d'Or. He deserved it when he won La Liga with Real Madrid [in 2011-12]," Bento told reporters.

Ronaldo, who skippers Portugal, has also scored 10 times in nine international matches for his country in 2013.